Gender and Sexuality Politics in the James Bond Film Series: Cultural Origins of Gay Inclusion in the U.S Military

How did gays in the military go from being characterized as dangerous perverts threatening the state to potential heroes fighting on behalf of the state? Numerous studies have identified various legal and political conditions that can account for resistance to this change. This article explores popular culture as a contributor to public understanding that, in turn, supported these political developments. Using the James Bond film series to track shifts in public understanding of gender and sexuality norms, I argue that such developments can be seen as a contributing factor leading to lifting the ban on gays in the military, an important step in a classic civil rights narrative in the United States in which the interests of a previously excluded minority group and the liberal state gradually converge, leading to greater political inclusion overtime. I conclude by suggesting that popular culture analysis may also provide the basis for a more critical civil rights narrative that reveals persistent divergences between state and minority group interests, highlighting an ongoing basis for dissent from state power.